Gmail Android app breaks free, adds new features

Now a standalone app and not part of the Android OS

Google's got some exciting news. It's decided to brake its email functionality out from the core Android code, allowing them to offer incremental upgrades to users without having to insist you upgrade the whole operating system every time.

"We just released a new version of the Gmail app in Android Market, so Gmail updates aren’t tied to Android version releases anymore. Now you can get new Gmail stuff faster without having to wait for system updates. To start you off, we’ve improved message replies, access to quoted text, and more," says Google.

That means priority inbox, your most important message actions will now stick to the top of the screen, and the ability to view previous message content more easily, just like in the desktop version of Gmail.

The catch, there's always a catch isn't there? Well it's that the new Gmail app is only available on Froyo (Android version 2.2) running devices.

Still if that's you, then head over to the Marketplace and get your email fill.